Which are factors of x2 – 4x – 5? Select two options. (x – 5) (x – 4) (x – 2) (x + 1) (x + 5)

( x+1) ( x-5 )

Step-by-step explanation:  

The middle number is -4 and the last number is -5.

Factoring means we want something like

(x+_)(x+_)

Which numbers go in the blanks?

We need two numbers that...

Add together to get -4

Multiply together to get -5

Can you think of the two numbers?

Try 1 and -5:

1+-5 = -4

1*-5 = -5

Fill in the blanks in

(x+_)(x+_)

with 1 and -5 to get...

(x+1)(x-5)

(x+1)(x−5) :)

(x + 1)(x - 5)

Step-by-step explanation:

Our equation is:

x² - 4x - 5

We need to factor it, so look at the factors of the coefficient of the x² term and the constant term. The coefficient of x² is 1, whose factors are obviously 1 and 1. The constant term is -5, so its factors are (1, -5) or (-1, 5).

We want to find the product of the factors from 1 and -5 such that they add up to the coefficient of the x term, which is -4 in this case. Upon observation, we see that 1 * 1 + 1 * (-5) = 1 - 5 = -4. So, our factors are 1x + 1 and 1x - 5, or:

(x + 1)(x - 5)

Hope this helps!